Waste reduction apparatus

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for reducing the volume of waste material, particularly solid waste material, thereby increasing the compaction capabilities of a wide variety of materials. The apparatus includes a rotor provided with a plurality of free swinging blades thereon with alternate blades being straight and angulated and moving past and through a stationary comb-like cutter bar or anvil for providing a sequential cutting action which enables reduction of solid waste material with less power requirements. The rotor is disposed within a housing having a hopper inlet and a discharge chute with a deflector plate being disposed in association with the rotor in a manner to hold material in the cutting area to more effectively reduce the material. A fan is provided to facilitate discharge of material, particularly fines thus further enhancing the efficiency of the device.

United States Patent 1 Harmon et al.

[111 3,856,218 Dec. 24, 1974 l l WASTE REDUCTION APPARATUS 221 Filed:Nov. 21, 1972 21 Appl. No.: 308,546

OTHER PUBLICATIONS Advertisement by Bryant Engineering Co., AmericanMiller & Processor, Feb., 1947, page 58.

Prirnary ExaminerRoy Lake Assistant Examiner-E. F. Desmond Attorney,Agent, or Firm-Joe 0. Bolt, Jr.

[ 5 7 ABSTRACT An apparatus for reducing the volume of waste material,particularly solid waste material, thereby increasing the compactioncapabilities of a wide variety of materials. The apparatus includes arotor provided with a plurality of free swinging blades thereon withalternate blades being straight and angulated and moving past andthrough a stationary comb-like cutter bar or anvil for providing asequential cutting action which enables reduction of solid wastematerial with less power requirements. The rotor is disposed within ahousing having a hopper inlet and a discharge chute with a deflectorplate being disposed in association with the rotor in a manner to holdmaterial in the cutting area to more effectively reduce the material. A

- fan is provided to facilitate discharge of material, particularlyfines thus further enhancing the efficiency of the device.

8 Claims, 10 Drawing Figures WASTE REDUCTION APPARATUS BACKGROUND OF THEINVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention generallyrelates to apparatuses for reducing the volume of solid waste materialand more particularly a pulverizingor comminuting device employing ahopper and rotor disposed therein 'with the rotor having a novel bladearrangement thereon associated with a cutter bar or anvil and adeflector plate for effectively reducing the volume of waste materialand further including a fan structure to facilitate discharge of thematerial.

2. Description of the Prior Art The disposal of solid waste materialconstitutes a substantial problem under many conditions. For example, inland clearing operations, building demolition operations, disposal oftrash and garbage, disposal of old railroad ties which have beenreplaced and the disposal of many other types of solid waste materialfor many years was accomplished by incineration of suchmaterials. Inmany localities, burning of material is prohibited inasmuch as itcreates a substantial health problem. As an alternative to burning,solid waste materials have been disposed of in landfills and the like.Inasmuch as such materials usually have many void spaces, there havebeen numerous efforts made to compact waste material to facilitatetransport of the waste material to the disposal site and also to enablethe waste material to occupy a smaller volume of space.

Many types of compacting devices have been employed, some beingstationary and some portable and, in addition, efforts have been made toreduce the volume of waste material by cutting, pulverizing, comminutingand the like. While such known devices operate effectively under certainconditions, certain shortcomings have existed in known devices.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is toprovide a waste reduction apparatus that is capable of handling abroader range of waste materials such as waste materials from landclearing operations, demolition operations, cross ties from railroadrepair operations, garbage, trash and other similar solid wastematerials.

Another object of the invention is to provide a waste reductionapparatus employing a housing or casing having a hopper receiving thewaste material and a discharge chute for discharging the waste materialcapable of being mounted stationarily or in a portable manner with thedevice having a relatively low initial cost and operating for longperiods of time without expensive maintenance and efficiently reducingthe volume of the solid waste material.

A further object of the invention is to provide a waste reductionapparatus which includes a rotor having a plurality of blades mountedthereon which pass in close proximity to a comb type anvil that areconstructed and arranged in such a manner that a sequential cuttingaction on the waste material is accomplished to more effectively reducethe volume of the material and reduce the power requirements for thisoperation.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a waste reductionapparatus in accordance with the preceding objects in which the hopperis provided with a curved deflector plate on the trailing side of theanvil to maintain the material in the cutting area for a substantialperiod of time to render the cutting and discharging operationmoreefficient.

Yet another significant feature of the present invention is to provide awaste reduction apparatus incorporating a fan structure at each end ofthe rotor and hopper to facilitate discharge of the material,particularly fines, and render the action of the rotor more effective bymaintaining the rotor relatively free of material and entraining thematerial in the air to more effectively discharge such material throughthe discharge chute.

These together with other objects and advantages which will becomesubsequently apparent reside in the details of construction andoperation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, whereinlike numerals refer to like parts throughout.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a side elevational view ofthe waste reduction apparatus of the present invention illustrating atypical installation on an over-the-road trailer.

FIG. 2 is an end elevational view, on a reduced scale, illustrating theassociation of the waste reduction apparatus to the transportingtrailer.

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the waste reduction apparatus.

FIG. 4 is a transverse, vertical sectional view taken substantially upona plane passing along section line 44 of FIG. 3 illustrating therelationship of the components of the apparatus.

FIG. 5 is a fragmental, longitudinal sectional view, on an enlargedscale, of one endportion of the rotor.

FIG. 6 is a transverse, sectional view taken substantially upon a planepassing along section 66 on FIG. 3 illustrating the structure of the fanon each end of the rotor.

FIG. 7 is a detail sectional view taken substantially upon a planepassing along section line 7-7- on FIG. 6 illustrating furtherstructural details of the fan.

FIG.8 is a diagrammatic perspective viewillustrating the relationship ofthe rotor and blades thereon and the comb anvil.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of one of the straight blades.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of one of the angular blades.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The waste reduction apparatus ofthe present invention is generally designated by reference numeral 12and as illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings, it may be mountedon a suitable load carrying trailer generally designated by referencenumeral 14, which is of conventional construction. A suitable source ofpower, such as an internal combustion engine generally. designated byreference numeral 16 is mounted on the trailer and drivingly connectedwith the waste reduction apparatus 12 through a power transmittingmechanism 18. While the waste reduction apparatus 12 is illustrated asbeing mounted on a trailer 14, it may also be stationarily supported orrendered portable by employing other structural arrangements. When thedevice is mounted on a trailer, it is constructed so that it will complywith dimensional limitations of over-theroad vehicles in the area inwhich it will be used.

The waste reduction apparatus 12 includes an elongated generallycylindrical housing 20 having an inlet hopper structure generallydesignated by reference numeral 22 extending upwardly therefrom inoffset relation to the housing and also a discharge chute generallydesignated by the numeral 24 extending upwardly and in an angulardirection in spaced relation to the hopper 22.

The hopper 22 includes a substantially vertical wall 26 that generallyis tangent to one side of the cylindrical casing and an inclined wall 28which diverges upwardly in relation to the vertical wall 26 and thewalls 26 and 28 are interconnected by end walls 30 thus pro- I viding aninlet for solid waste material 32 with the casing 20 having asubstantial circumferential extent open to the hopper inlet orpassageway 30. The solid waste material may be deposited into the hopperinlet in any suitable manner such as by using a conveyor, funnellikedevice or any other suitable manual or automatic device.

Disposed interiorly of the casing is a rotor generally designated bynumeral 34 which includes a substantially cylindrical drum 36 having aplurality of longitudinally spaced discs 38 rigidly fixed thereto inequally spaced relation. At each end of the cylindrical drum 36, a stubshaft or axle 40 is mounted concentrically by spaced apertured circularplates 42 which are rigidly fixed to the drum 36 and rigidly fixed tothe shaft 40 as by welding or the like thereby forming a rigid assemblyof the shafts 40 and the drum 36.

Mounted on the discs 38 is a plurality ofstraight blades 44 and angularor offset blades 46 which are pivotally secured to the discs and projectoutwardly therefrom for passing in cutting relation to a comb-like anvilor cutter bar 48 which includes a plurality of longitudinally spacedprojecting anvils 50 in alignment with the periphery of the discs 38.Each straight blade 48 (FIG. 9) is generally rectangular and includes anaperture 52 for receiving a mounting bolt 54. The outer end portion ofthe blade 44 has projecting cutting edges 56 on each side edge thereofwith one side of the cutting edge 56 being defined by a bevelled surface58 which is scarfed or serrated. The outermost corners of the cuttingedge 56 are rounded at 60 and the outer end edge of the blade may alsobe slightly flared outwardly at the end portions thereof.

Each offset blade 46 (FIG. includes an inner end portion 62 having anaperture 64 therein for receiving a mounting bolt 54 in the same manneras blade 44.

The blade 46 also includes an outer end portion 66' which is oriented inangular relation to the inner portion 62 with the angle being varieddepending upon the materials to be reduced. An angle of 45 has been usedsuccessfully but different blade angles and lengths will be used withdifferent materials to minimize power requirements and to providedifferent final particle sizes and shapes. The outer end portion 66 ofthe blade 46 and a portion of the inner end portion 62 thereof isprovided with an outwardly projecting cutting edge 68 which is bevelledat 70 and also scarfed or serrated. The mounting bolts 54 serve tofreely swingably mount the blades 44 and 46 in position on the discswith the blades being alternately arranged and passing in closeproximity to the cutting bars or anvils 50 thus providing a cutting orshearing action. The cutting action is enhanced by the sequenced actionof an offset blade and a straight blade passing through the materialthat is force and protect the structure of the hopper. The bot tomcylindrical portion of the cylindrical casing 20 curves so that itremains closely adjacent the periphery of the blades as illustrated inFIG. 4 and is in the form of a generally curved or circular deflectorplate 74 which retains the material in the cutting area for a longperiod of time and also serves as a portion of the loading chute 24. Theloading chute includes a bottom or lower wall 76 that is a tangentialextension of the lower portion of the casing or the curved deflectorplate 74 and also an upper wall 78 which extends substantially radiallyfrom the casing 20 in circumferentially spaced relation to the wall 28as illustrated in FIG. 4. The chute 24 also includes end walls 80 whichguide the particles of waste material 82 outwardly'into a discharge pipeor chute extension 84 that may be provided I with a curved spout 86 orthe like. The discharge pipe or chute extension 84 may be detachablymounted or pivotally mounted so that it may be oriented for discharge ofmaterial laterally of the vehicle 14 into a container, a load body on atruck or any other suitable area.

At each end of the hopper 22, a fan assembly 88 is provided in the formof a hollow housing 90 that may be cylindrical in configuration andconnected with the end walls 30 of the hopper 22 in any suitable manner.The outer circular plate of the housing 90 is provided with an air inletaperture 92 provided with a closure screen 94 to prevent entry ofobjects into the housing and to prevent engagement with the fan impeller96 that is disposed interiorly of the housing 90 and rigidly fixed tothe shaft 40 in any suitable manner such as by the use of a hub 98secured thereto. As illustrated, the

impeller 96 includes an inner circular plate 100 rigid with the hub 98and radial blades 102 having inclined corner portions 104 fixed to theplate and also fixed with respect to an annular front plate 106 thusproviding a centrifugal impeller for intake of air through the opening92 and discharge thereof into a tangential discharge housing 108 whichcommunicates with and merges with the chute 24 through an open area 110in the end walls 80 so that air discharged by the fan will entrain andconvey fine particles of waste material through the discharge chute andeffectively prevent clogging of the waste reduction apparatus. Theplates 42 may be solid in which event all air for material transfer isapplied by the fans through housing 108. However, air can be permittedto pass through the apertured plates 42 when the ends thereof are incommunication with the atmosphere either directly or through the fanhousing. This air will be drawn in and expelled through holes in theperiphery of the drum in the manner of a squirrel cage fan to facilitatedischarge of material through the discharge chute.

trated, the supporting structure or trailer 14 may be a conventionallow-boy trailer, the drive mechanism may be a multiple V-belt drive andthe power source may be an internal combustion engine such as a dieselengine or the like to enable the device to be transported to the site ofa land clearing operation or to the location of any other solid wastematerial to be reduced in volume.

The comb anvil or cutter bar 48 may be detachably supported for removaland replacement with suitable fastening bolts being provided for thispurpose. Alternatively, the anvil or cutter bar 48 may be in the form ofa plurality of individual comb-like teeth that are independently securedin place thus facilitating replacement of the anvil teeth. Also, theliner or reinforcement 74 may be a replaceable plate having ribs orprojections on the inner surface thereof to retain the solid wastematerial in the hopper thusenabling the cutting action of the knives tocommence even before the solid waste material reaches the cutting anvilsor bars 50. The dimensions of the various components may vary and thestrength characteristics of all of the components may vary dependingupon the desired capacity and waste reduction capabilities of theapparatus.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles ofthe invention. Further, since numerous modifications andchanges willreadily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limitthe invention to the exact construction and operation shown anddescribed, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalentsmay be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A solid waste reduction apparatus comprising, in

combination:

a. a housing support means constructed to include a horizontallyoriented, substantially cylindrical shaped portion defining a materialreduction area, said housing including horizontally spaced, upwardlyprojecting wall means defining a vertically oriented material entrancepassageway, said passageway detailed in location whereby material canflow by gravity through said passageway into said material reductionarea, and wherein said housing includes a material discharge passagewayprojecting substantially radially from said cylindrical shaped portion;

b. a cutting assembly rotatably supported in said material reductionarea, said cutting assembly including a plurality of axially spacedcircular discs, with each disc having a plurality of cutting elementspivment to an operable cutting position projecting radially from saiddisc; and, I

c. anvil means supported on said housing for coperation with saidcutting elements for effecting a reduction of material introducedthrough said entrance passageway, said anvil means including a pluralityof anvil elements, one anvil element axially spaced and aligned witheach of said discs and detailed in length to extend to a positionadjacent the circumferential edge of said disc.

2. The structure as defined in claim 1 together with fan means drivinglyconnected with the cutting assemblyfor discharging air into thedischarge passageway for entraining reduced waste material thereintofacilitate discharge of such material and prevent clogging of the cuttermeans.

3. The structure as defined in claim 1 wherein said cutting elementsincludes a plurality of cutter blades projecting radially from theperiphery of the discs and being mounted on the discs for free swingingmovement, certain of the cutter blades being straight and other of thecutter blades being angulated with the straight and angulated bladesbeing alternately arranged on the drum for sequenced cutting of thesolid waste material. I

4. The structure as defined in claim 3 wherein said anvil means includesan elongated bar having a plurality of longitudinally spaced projectingcutter bars along one edge thereof thereby defining a comb-likestructure with the cutter bars receiving the cutter blades therebetweenand holding solid waste material during the sequenced cutting action ofthe blades.

5. The structure as defined in claim 4 wherein said housing includes acurved deflector plate extending from the cutter bar towards thedischarge passageway with the curvature of the deflector plate beingsubstantially the same as the path of movement of the outer ends of thecutter blades thereby retaining solid waste material in the cutting areafor an extended period of time.

6. The structure as defined in claim 5 wherein said housing and cuttingassembly are elongated with the entrance passageway and dischargepassageway and being commensurate in length therewith, said dischargepassageway being in the form of a chute extending generally tangentiallyfrom the housing, said housing including fan means at each end thereofdrivingly connected with the cutting assembly and including dischargemeans communicated with the discharge passageway for discharging airthrough the chute for entraining fine particles of solid waste materialto facilitate discharge of material from the discharge chute.

7. The structure as defined in'claim 6 wherein each of said fan meansincludes a screened inlet facing outwardly of the casing concentric withthe rotational axis of the rotatable member.

8. A structure as defined in claim 1 further characterized in that saidwaste reduction apparatus is mounted on vehicle support means wherebysaid apparatus can be moved to various locations for reducing waste.

1. A solid waste reduction apparatus comprising, in combination: a. ahousing support means constructed to include a horizontally oriented,substantially cylindrical shaped portion defining a material reductionarea, said housing including horizontally spaced, upwardly projectingwall means defining a vertically oriented material entrance passageway,said passageway detailed in location whereby material can flow bygravity through said passageway into said material reduction area, andwherein said housing includes a material discharge passageway projectingsubstantially radially from said cylindrical shaped portion; b. acutting assembly rotatably supported in said material reduction area,said cutting assembly including a plurality of axially spaced circulardiscs, with each disc having a plurality of cutting elements pivotallysupported and circumferentially spaced adjacent the edge of said disc,said disc detailed in shape and location to provide a rotary supportingsurface beneath and adjacent the bottom of said material entrancepassageway for supporting material to be automatically fed by gravityduring a cutting operation, said cutting elements detailed in size andlocation to be capable of pivotal movement to an inoperable cuttingposition completely within the circumference of said disc and movementto an operable cutting position projecting radially from said disc; and,c. anvil means supported on said housing for coperation with saidcutting elements for effecting a reduction of material introducedthrough said entrance passageway, said anvil means including a pluralityof anvil elements, one anvil element axially spaced and aligned witheach of said discs and detailed in length to extend to a positionadjacent the circumferential edge of said disc.
 2. The structure asdefined in claim 1 together with fan means drivingly connected with thecutting assembly for discharging air into the discharge passageway forentraining reduced waste material thereinto facilitate discharge of suchmaterial and prevent clogging of the cutter means.
 3. The structure asdefined in claim 1 wherein said cutting elements includes a plurality ofcutter blades projecting radially from the periphery of the discs andbeing mounted on the discs for free swinging movement, certain of thecutter blades being straight and other of the cutter blades beingangulated with the straight and angulated blades being alternatelyarranged on the drum for sequenced cutting of the solid waste material.4. The structure as defined in claim 3 wherein said anvil means includesan elongated bar having a plurality of longitudinally spaced projectingcutter bars along one edge thereof thereby defining a comb-likestructure with the cutter bars receiving the cutter blades therebetweenand holding solid waste material during the sequenced cutting action ofthe blades.
 5. The structure as defined in claim 4 wherein said housingincludes a curved deflector plate extending from the cutter bar towardsthe discharge passageway with the curvature of the deflector plate beingsubstantially the same as the path of movement oF the outer ends of thecutter blades thereby retaining solid waste material in the cutting areafor an extended period of time.
 6. The structure as defined in claim 5wherein said housing and cutting assembly are elongated with theentrance passageway and discharge passageway and being commensurate inlength therewith, said discharge passageway being in the form of a chuteextending generally tangentially from the housing, said housingincluding fan means at each end thereof drivingly connected with thecutting assembly and including discharge means communicated with thedischarge passageway for discharging air through the chute forentraining fine particles of solid waste material to facilitatedischarge of material from the discharge chute.
 7. The structure asdefined in claim 6 wherein each of said fan means includes a screenedinlet facing outwardly of the casing concentric with the rotational axisof the rotatable member.
 8. A structure as defined in claim 1 furthercharacterized in that said waste reduction apparatus is mounted onvehicle support means whereby said apparatus can be moved to variouslocations for reducing waste.